B.S. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (2018)
I’m primarily interested in the evolution of white dwarfs. Gaps occur at certain temperature ranges where non-hydrogen dominated atmosphere white dwars do not appear. Magnetic fields can inhibit convection, creating complicated interiors and atmospheres that vary from traditional gravitational settling. The origin of these fields remains under dispute, as main-sequence stars with strong fields are not common enough to form the amount of magnetic white dwarfs we see. Mergers, binary interactions, and core crystallization can generate fields after the star becomes a white dwarf, but the links between these processes and field generation are not well understood. Crystallization in particular is a very new subject with many more questions than answers. Regardless, we are finding more white dwarfs with inhomogenous atmospheres, which can be detected as the stars rotate. These are potential clues into how white dwarfs change as they cool down.
I’m an observational astronomer, focused on obtaining and processing data with telescopes such as the Gemini 8-meter and our own APO 3.5-meter. I serve as the President of Lunar Sooners, OU’s astronomy outreach club. We host star parties where we bring out telescopes to underrepresented communities and give them a glimpse of the universe. We also have a portable planetarium that lets us give educational tours of the night sky.
